1
ASHER
She’s so beautiful, even in sleep. The shadows in the room blanket most of her, but faint light sifting through the sheer curtains highlights the curves of her body, the delicate features of her face, painting her beauty in a way that makes the breath catch in my chest. She’s never more perfect to me than when she’s raw and unfiltered. And I wish more than anything that I had more time with her like this, away from the world, away from all the things that threaten to tear us apart—irrevocably. I can’t let that happen.
I take a step closer to her bed, careful not to wake her, even as she shifts fitfully in a restless sleep.
Her brow is slightly furrowed, her full lips are drawn and tight, and I wonder if she dreams of me the way I do of her—during the small intervals I do manage to sleep. My pride hopes her trouble sleeping is not from the storm that raged for most of the night, but because she’s back in her old bedroom alone, and not downstairs, sleeping with me in our bed.
Thathas to end.
Ella told me she needed space. I’ve given her three days.Some might say that’s nothing, but I think I’ve been more than generous.
Weeks ago, the thought of pining after a woman because of a three-day separation would have been unconceivable. But Ella isn’t just any woman. She’s the woman who surprised the hell out of me, who glimpsed something in me so few had taken the time to. Before her, I’d never met a woman who saw past my facade. Never known a woman who cared to look at the man behind the money—the person behind the power and prestige. I’ve never been wanted for anything more than the glittering spectacle of wealth and fame that surround me. Women in droves want Asher Langford—but no woman has ever just wanted Asher.
Until Ella.
But she’s so much more than a surprise.
She’s the force of nature that burst into my life and obliterated it as it was. Someone whose joy and love and goodness shine like a beacon of warmth in my world of cold indifference. She’s the singular person who calls to me like a siren’s song, and can’t help but fall into her, wholly caught in her spell.
I’ve never wanted anything as much as I want her.
And yet, here we are, with three days of space between us. I know she’s scared. I know she has reservations. With the way our relationship began, and everything that’s happened since, how could she not? I understand her fears, truly, I do. But I’m at my wit’s end.
I will make her one promise at a time until I can give her everything she wants. Everything she deserves. In the meantime, I need her back to where we were before everything fell apart.
I take one last step toward her sleeping figure, grateful for the lingering drizzle from last night’s storm that patters softly against the windows, stifling the sound. I reach into my pocket and grasp the gold ring Ella thought she could take off andleave behind. Holding my breath, I reach for her right hand and gently slip the ring back onto her middle finger.
There. That’s better.
Ella does not get to remove parts of me from her. Not anymore. We’re too far past that. I gave her space to humor her in a moment when she was incredibly vulnerable—I’m not a complete asshole. But that moment has passed, and I’m done humoring her. Ella is mine.
And when she wakes, she’ll be reminded of that.
“Take it easy, asshole,”I growl at Declan thirty minutes later as he lands a right hook across my jaw. He gets a little over excited when he’s fighting someone who can hang with him, since that doesn’t happen often. We’re at the VI Club; a gentleman’s club my family has belonged to since its inception over two centuries ago. It’s where the elite of the elite meet for business, pleasure, and all manner of debauchery. But I’m not here for any of those things, I’m here because they have a state-of-the-art boxing facility that I’m in desperate need of. With everything going on, I feel like I’m about to lose my goddamned mind, and I figure punching Declan in the boxing ring is a better option than punching someone at the office. With the mood I’m in, that could be a real possibility, and with so much on the line, it’s not a mistake I can afford to make.
I move my jaw back and forth to work out the pain because even though we’re wearing sparring gear, Declan’s got a hell of an arm and his hits sting like a bitch.
“Sorry,” he grunts through a smile. But I know better. He’s not sorry at all. He’s enjoying every second of kicking my ass. Declan is the most athletic of the three of us Langford brothers, and if my mother hadn’t put up fights about him playing football and boxing, he could have gone far in either of thosesports. I barely block his next jab and somehow get in a body shot.
“I take it Ella’s still looking for an apartment,” Declan says as we dance around one another.
“She is. But unluckily for her, there aren’t many vacancies at the moment.”
“And you wouldn’t have anything to do with that.” His tone is mocking.
“It’s not my fault the moment Ella sees a listing and calls on it, the realtor lets her know that someone is interested and already put down a deposit.”
“Sure, it’s not.”
“I won’t have her anywhere but my penthouse. It’s not safe.”
“So, she’s back to sleeping upstairs.”
I get my own right hook in, annoyance buzzing through my veins at his words. “Last night was her last. She wanted space, and I gave it to her, but I’m at the end of my rope.”
“Why now? You’re leaving for Singapore tomorrow. The ten days you’re gone will give her more of that space she wants and time to think.”
